


can't stop thinking 'bout the (boy) in the (Star Wars) shirt

by scepticallyopenminded



Series: 30 Days of Writing Challenge [6]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: College Student Scott, College Student Stiles, M/M, Musician Boyd, Musician Derek, Musician Erica, Musician Isaac, Songwriter Derek
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-13
Updated: 2015-02-13
Packaged: 2018-03-12 06:06:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 988
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3346328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scepticallyopenminded/pseuds/scepticallyopenminded
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Or where Derek is part of a fairly-famous band but just likes riding the bus, and Stiles is the coolest fan he's ever met.</p>
            </blockquote>





	can't stop thinking 'bout the (boy) in the (Star Wars) shirt

**Author's Note:**

> title (sort of) from "The Girl In The Kinks Shirt" by Matt Nathanson, because listening to that song fifteen times a day when I was working at Sears last summer gave me this idea. Also it's an awesome song and video you should watch [here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_4Od6hgs_Q).

Derek has always loved riding the bus. It’s something that clears his mind, and back when he was younger and less famous, he’d get on a bus and just ride the route a few times. Actually, he’s written a few songs that way, because something about being on a large vehicle with a bunch of strangers gives him inspiration.

But since Inverted Morality had been the opening act for Fall Out Boy on the American leg of their tour last year, it’s been harder and near impossible for him to be able to use public transport. But sometimes, when he’s feeling stressed out and tight muscles, he does it anyway, puts on a beanie and sunglasses and does his best to be small, invisible.

Sometimes, it works. Sometimes, a real fan of Inverted Morality boards, and then, he’s left with nothing to do but engage them quietly (his preferred method) or get off at the next stop and call Erica to come pick him up (because she’s the only one he trusts driving his car; Isaac doesn’t have a licence and Boyd can’t drive stick).

So it’s not a surprise, so much, when a man who boarded the bus three stops ago with a friend and a bunch of grocery bags, won’t stop throwing sideways glances at him.

And Derek had been so sure he wouldn’t be recognized today. It’s been a while since Inverted Morality has played live anywhere, they’re working on their third album, so there haven’t been many pictures of any of them. Derek has been growing his beard out, it’s covering half his face at least, and his hair, which is usually long and floppy, is all tucked up underneath the beanie, and he’s wearing just a sweater instead of his usual leather jacket.

This dude, though, seems to see right through all that, and sure enough –

“You’re Derek Hale right?” he finally asks, and Derek flinches just slightly, but eventually turns to him, nods with a gruff “Hey.”

“Oh thank god,” the man replies, huffing out a laugh at himself as his friend looks on curiously, “I was thinking you had to be either Derek Hale or one seriously hot stranger.”

And Derek doesn’t know what to do but stare at him, because that’s not what he was expecting at all. The man’s friend gives him a small smack to the arm and the man glares back at him and Derek thinks about going back to staring out the window, thinking about the lyrics he was in the middle of thinking out, when the man turns back to him.

“Anyway, though, I’m Stiles. This is Scott,” he points to his friend, “Although he’s not as much a fan of Inverted Morality as I am. More of a fan of regular old pop. But I can get him to rock along to that riff you did in ‘Disgrace to the Ocean’ when you were still part of Everlasting Luminescence? One of his favourite songs, actually.”

The man’s friend – Scott – smiles brightly and nods.

“Great song.”

Which like. Derek is stunned, because barely anyone remembers Everlasting Luminescence. They’d gotten together, all part of the same college, him and four others. Their first album had been self-produced, but it had hit it rather big. Derek was only a sophomore in college then, but when one of their songs went to ninety eight on the Billboard Hot 100, he and the other three still in college had dropped out.

The song hit its peak at eighty five, and the album itself hadn’t done so well. Their second album, produced by a small-time studio, had utterly failed, and they’d broken up six months after its release. Something he’s been thankful for, because he works much better with Isaac and Boyd and Erica than he ever had with his previous bandmates, and Inverted Morality has had a couple of songs on the Hot 100, and their second and most recent album even hit number 164 on the Billboard 200.

But for this Stiles and Scott to know and _enjoy_ songs from his era at Everlasting Luminescence, that was. That was something else, actually, felt really good.

“Thanks,” he responds, smiling at the two of them, and Stiles looks temporarily stunned for a moment, before nodding and replying with, “I mean I like Inverted Morality a little bit more, I think the music is a little better and more sophisticated, but I really loved ‘Disgrace to the Ocean’ and ‘Music Answered My Prayers’.”

Which makes Derek feel good for a bunch of reasons, and he tells him as much.

“Those were the only two songs I wrote for Everlasting Luminescence.”

Stiles looks a little stunned at that, before responding with, “But your songs are always my favourite with Inverted Morality. Didn’t Luke and Erin and Kate and Chris know you were good?”

Derek snuffs, smiles.

“They were all a couple years older than me, had more experience with song writing, so I listened to them.”

“This is our stop,” Scott speaks up when Stiles goes to say something else, and Stiles glances out the window before smiling brightly at Derek.

“It was nice to meet you. You’re just as cool as I thought you’d be.”

Derek smiles back at him, genuine, this being by and far his best interaction with a fan ever.

“You too. It was great to meet you,” he nods as Stiles and Scott stand up and get off the bus, and he’s far from ashamed to say he watches them as the bus passes by.

***

Erica’s there when he gets to his house, and she raises her eyebrows because he’s smiling so brightly, but he ignores her in favour of going to his study and immediately writing down the lyrics stuck in his head.

No one needs to know the boy the song is about a man he met while riding a bus around Los Angeles.

**Author's Note:**

> find me at [asocialfoxpaw](http://asocialfoxpaw.tumblr.com/) or [onedirectionaremyfirstlove](http://onedirectionaremyfirstlove.tumblr.com/)


End file.
